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Beltre named AL Player of Month for September

Beltre named AL Player of Month for September

9/24/12: Adrian Beltre smacks a single up the middle with the bases loaded to plate the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning

By Andrew Simon
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MLB.com |

For the second season in a row, Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre is the American League Player of the Month for September.

The award, presented by Budweiser, went to Beltre on Tuesday, two days after he finished up his month with a .337 batting average and a 1.105 OPS in 26 games. He led the league with 71 total bases and a .724 slugging percentage, and finished second with 11 home runs.

The 33-year-old now has won a monthly award for the third time, and is the fourth AL player to take it in consecutive Septembers. The last to do so was the Indians' Albert Belle in 1998-99.

Beltre's big month helped the Rangers clinch a postseason berth and push their magic number for a third straight division title to two as they enter play on Tuesday. He smacked three doubles and a triple, racked up 19 RBIs and scored 19 runs, while not making an error in 54 fielding chances.

Beltre's September contained a trio of three-hit games and a streak of five homers in six days to begin the month. The 15-year-veteran also came through with several key hits, including a game-tying two-run shot and a walk-off single against the A's on Sept. 24. Beltre tied for second in the league with four game-winning RBIs.

Beltre started Tuesday ranked second in the AL with 334 total bases, fourth with a .319 batting average and .560 slugging percentage, sixth with 36 homers and ninth with 101 RBIs.

Andrew Simon is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.